Chernobyl Nuclear Accident Congressional Hearings Transcript

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gyESTJ^0N_2. What are the main safety issues that you believe
might have to be revisited in the U.S. as a result
of "lessons learned" from Chernobyl?
ANSWER .
There are three main areas which the NRC will examine for
"lessons learned" as a result of the Chernobyl accident. The
first area deals with those issues involving accident prevention.
The NRC will attempt to identify the initiating event, the
relationship of the Chernobyl plant design to the accidents and
transients that could occur in plants of that design, and to
assess the likelihood of such events. This relationship will be
compared to U.S. plants to systematically identify any
similarities and differences. The NRC will also be examining the
USSR approach to safety features that can potentially reduce
radiological consequences, such as containments, and at severe
accident management and accident recovery procedures.
The second area the NRC will investigate deals with the issues
involving emergency response planning. This includes
international cooperation and early warning programs as well as
reassessing the adequacy of current U.S. programs in light of any
lessons learned from Chernobyl. The NRC will be involved with
wide range planning efforts regarding radiation assessment, feed
chain impacts, and other environmental impacts. Close
coordination with other U.S. agencies, such as the Environmental